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Capital Punishment Essay: The Death Penalty In The United States

1262 Words6 Pages

In recent years, there have been debates regarding the death penalty, also known as Capital Punishment. Introduced by the European settlers, the death penalty was usually given to people like George Kendall, a captain who was supposedly a spy for the Spaniards during the early 1600’s. Slowly it evolutioned from hanging towards what we now call lethal injections, used to kill a criminal while not inflicting pain. Over the years, the death penalty has gained many supporters. Due to this, there have been countless disputes regarding what should be done about the death penalty. Opponents like myself believe that the death penalty is unjust towards minorities and fails to stop criminals; however proponents believe that it is the most fair way of …show more content…

However, if it were abolished and the government focused their efforts in more efficient tactics crime would decrease. As the author writes on “ The discussion should also include alternatives which help reduce the risk of violence and murder…Governments, of course, cannot fund every program that presents itself. Each program, including the death penalty, has its costs.” ( Dieter 8) As it is explained, if the death penalty were to be abolished the government would be able to fund more proactive programs that could be able to prevent crimes and violence. Furthermore, using life without parole instead of capital punishment would also be more effective. On Sentencing for Life: Americans Embrace Alternatives to the Death Penalty, the author quotes, “States that have used the sentence of life without parole say it works as promised. California has had a sentence of life without parole for over 25 years and not one person sentenced under this law has been released from prison.” (qtd in Dieter 5). This shows how life without parole can serve as a great alternative for the death penalty. If the death penalty were to be abolished, the government would be able to fund programs that would actually make a difference and prisoners with more severe sentences wouldn’t be able to hurt others like some proponents

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